498
TOKYO.
[FROM OCR CORRESPONDENT]
Tokyo, 15th December.
JAPAN'S NAVAL EXPANSI N.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
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In the Japanese House of Representatives on Saturday, December 13th, Mr. cho Nemeto, a member of Marquis Ito's party, asked if the naval expansion scheme was an outcome of the Anglo-Japanese agreement, and wi ether Japau was bound by that agreement, to increase her navy? The Premier responded that Japan was not bound by the agreement with England to incre se her fleet. Mr. Taguel i, an indepen- dent member, express d his surprise at the fact. that neither the Premier nor the Minister of Finance had offered any explanation of the necessity of the naval expansion programme; The Premier, said M. Taguchi, had jut referred to the increase of friendly relations | between Japan and the Western Powers. this increase of friendly relations the reason why the fleet should be strengthened? Baron Yamamoto, the Minister of the Navy, replied that he had intended to reserve explanation on those matters till the Committee meetings, bui that since Mr. Taguchi had challenged him to give an explanation he would give one. The reason therefore why the G. verament had decided to begin another expansion programme on the eve of the completion of the present ten-year programine, was because the trend of affairs in the Far East and even the present state of things there demanded it.
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Mr. Taguchi asked for a more definite ex- planation, but Baron Yamamoto refused to be drawn. He promised, however, to refer to the
matter on a future occasion.
MANILA.
[FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.)
Manila, 17th December,
THE C.S. TACIFIC FLEET.
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NORTHERN NOTES,
We take the following items from 1'. a 7' Times of the Bih inst.:
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1902.
[ Dece nher 29,
vails within ten degrees of the Equator. Surgen-General Sternberg's statemeal of its geographical distribution is evidenco that it may be epid mi- and endemie forty degrees from the Equator; aud as a matter of fact tongkong is in exactly the sam· latituds as Mexico and Cub, whie is continuous y endemic.
he Siberian rone is clearly becoming popu lar in Tientsin for mails. On Tuesday night. there was quite a rish of work at the French post office on the Bund beiseen land á pm. The officials are embodied courtesy is making matters plain; and there is one sidier, who though self-taught, speaks capital English.
Viceroy Chang has consurid Sheng Tai-tzi or twelve things, says the Jh Jih. There is a story current that Sheng declined a requested kan to Chang when he was leaving Hupel, and that this has made an enemy of the Viceroy,
We hear from authoritative but not offical sources that Mr. J. L. Seatt, the Chairman of the Shanghai Branch of the China Associa¦ tion, and Dr. Robertson of Tientsiu are to area, the other two members of the Committee of the China shareholders re the C. E. and M. Co investigation.
Prince Ching will most probably visit Jaian for the Exhibition next year. He is too old to reuture on a long journey, but thinks he can manage the short Lea trip to Jap:n.
The repairing of the North Gate of Peking, which was destroyed by the Allies, has now been completed and traffic has ben resumed through it.
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Never since the port lus len op ned have building operations be so general in Decumber, The bricklayers and plasterers are all working at top spd, and incipient frost is apparently a forgotten quantity. A sear of houses are wel ↑ beyond the stage that the contractos evor thought they would reach this year.
The great success of the Peking Industrial institute has led to the Government giving in- s ructions for similar institutes to he established in councction with all primary schools.
More nachinery has arrived for the Tientsin Mint, and it is expected that the coinage of copper rout pieces will be started very shortly,
According to L'Impartial, the China Mar- chauts S. N. Co. has not made such profits as was expected, and there is
talk of introduci g foreign capital. The proposal is now before the Government, bat no decision has yet been arrived at.
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2. Surgeon-tis,eral Sternberg in the pas age quoted is enriously inconsis'eut. After show- ang that it has been carried to su places as Spain and Portugal, and the West Coast of Africa, and has there fr. quently ben epidemic. he proceeds to argu on theoretical considers- tions that it is unlikely to be carried by shipping to distant sapo is. His pography may bo translated into the general statement that yellow fever has in te pist been landed practically in every locality having direct shipping communication with the endom.c
7 C., up
of nd down the coasts America and across the Atlantic.e does not mention, but it is the fact, that cases have been lauded in both France and England, not very much nearer to central America th n Longkong. That it has not spread in the clim- atic and hygienic conditions existing in Europe does not touch the question; the point is, that yellow ferer has been frequently lauded in different European countries by ships carrying it from the We-t Indies and Central America.
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3. Surgeon-General Sternberg's article states that the micsqn to which serves as an inter- mi dialo host for the yellow fever germ has
somewhat restricted" geographical range." Here, however, in Hougkong there is 10 more common mosquita than the black-and- • white "tiger" mosquito, Ste jamyin scutellaris, as closely related to the. Stegomyia fasciata to which yellow fever has been traced in Cuba, as are the various species of auopheles, which indifferently transmit malaria, to each other. And, as I sud in my lecture, I find that its babits correspond in every detail with those of the Cuban variety.
4. The grounds on which I have been accused of being alarmnist,“ ri:, the latitude of Houg- kong and its distance from Mexico, both fall before the facts. Facts are stubborn things," and the facts are with me in my assertion that thera is
to th's danger grave
direct Colony in the opening of
st am with a country in which communication yellow fever is endemie. I do not wish to bo "alarmist "; and I do not pose as a prophet. - It may be that no case of yellow fever will ever reach Hougking; it may be that the large now existing well-equipped sanitary staff 11:3
would stamp it out forthwith, even if it did.
But two facts are undoubted, appear among us. réz, (1) that all xperience is in favour of our having ere long to deal with yellow fever under the new conditions about to be established. and (2) that Slegomyir, the transmitter yellow fever, abounds in Hongkong.
Gen. Chiang's troops in Peking, which have been charged with the special duty of the suppressing of robbery and urigandage, have made but little progress on these lines. This is hardly strango, perhaps, when we hear that many of the robberies are committed by in uniform “*!
6.
An Indian deserter has been sent back to Peking from Kalgan, where he has been for some months indulging in a little high life, which has resulted in an acenmulation of various costly garments, trinkets and ponies.
The China Times regrets to hear of the death, of M. André Pierre Ricard, student-int rpreter at the French Consulat», which took place at
Tientsin on 7th inst., at the French Hospital General. M. Ricard was 23 years of age," and had only been in China a few months. He was a pleasant and very promising young French-
A small squadron of American warships arrived here late last night. The U.S. fleet under command of Rear-Admiral R. D. Evans is assembling now and in about two works' time will begin some extensive manœuvres between this port and the comparatively new naval station at Olangapo, iu Subig Bay. All the American ships on the Asiatic station, it is believed, will take part in these great naval drills in the waters of Western Luzon. The maneuvres : re to begin in the first work of January and with some of the ships will possibly con tinue for the entire month. After that most of the U.S. feet will accompany the Ang ship Kentucky on a trip to Batavia, Singapore, and Saigon. A port in Cochiu-China will be visited by the Heet, when a chance will be offered to some of the officers to visit the Hanoi Exposition. Probably the bulk of the ships, with Admiral Evans, will proceed to Madras, Bombay, Calcutta, and other Indian ports. I notice that in one of the American papers, a correspondent, writing of the U.S.S. Yorktown, which has been in the Philippines for more than four years, says: "I sincerely hope that the Yorktown will be one of the first ships ordered homo. It certainly is the York- town's due. This ship needs, mort decidedly, to be put out of commission, and to have a new battery and new boilers. One boiler at present is cracked all the way across, and the gun
TO THE EDITOR OF THE DAILY PRENS." carriages, very old fashioned, are almost dan gerous to handle. In fact, one or two have
Hongkong, 19th D.ember, 1902. SIR-I am much indebted to your corres- carried away during target practice and savere injuries to the guu's crews were only avertedpondent "B" for his courteous letter in your by the merest luck. There will be some serious issue of this morning, including an extract from losses unless this ship is soou put out of
paper on yellow fever by the Surgeon commission." The Yorktown was one of the flotilla which just visited us.
TROUBLE IN MINDANAO,
The Moros are still on the warpath in Min danao, and news of an exciting character may be expected from that quarter shortly.
A SMALL MISHAP.
The other day an U.S. transport, carrying General Miles and party, ran ou to a coral-reef at Lagaspi, near Manila, and remained fast for seven hours. She got off undamage', however.
man.
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CORRESPONDENCE.
We do not hold ourselves responsible for the opinions expressed by our correspondents.]
DR. THOMSON ON MOSQUITOES.
General of the US. Army, who is entitled to speak with authority on this subject.
1. It corrects au erroneous impression left
by one of the speakers at the Odd Volumes courersazione, to which 1 had uo oppor tunity of reply on account of the laten ss of the hour. ly statement regarding the possibility of yellow fever reaching Hongkong through the direct shipping communication about to be established with an endemic regiou
was described as ala: mist," un the ground of a belief that it ouly. pre-
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matters.
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5. But, Mr. Editor, while opinion as to the bearing of the facts I have referied to may be divided. I hope that side issues will not be allow, I to tuin public attention from the main subject, as so frequently happens in other After eliminating every point that may be disputed, there is in the presence in this Colony of malaria and the filarial diseases, sufficiency of solid argument to justify all the vigerous measures I have advocated against the whole family of mosquitoes; and I take this opportunity of re-emphasising the fact that much as the Government may be doing, and may be willing to d, it ultimat ly depends on an enlightened public opinion to carry this matter through to its ultimate issues, and reduce mosquitoes in this Colony to a minimum.- Yours, etc.,
JOHN C. THOMSON,
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THE CURENCY QUESTION.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE
DAILY PRESS
Hongko g. 23rd Decomber. With reference to the following paragraph written by the Editor of the China Mail in Monday's iss, a: The majority of the Clam- ber's Committee do not ses how the gold standard can be introduced here unless China gees gold '"-do the majority look u on the arga- question in this light? and is it the old af ment that Hongkong cannot go ou a gold basis because it is too near ** silver-using China ?" That argument is surely absurd as comparing
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